ARIZONA - The Arizona Cardinals are one practice away from completely finishing training camp.
The team has spent weeks at State Farm Stadium in an attempt to perfect its craft, define roles and identify the best 53 players to carry into the regular season.
We've seen numerous players grow into their respective roles - while others have simply fallen out of favor.
In particular, two notable names find themselves on the verge of potentially being cut with three preseason games remaining:
Arizona Cardinals running back Trey Benson (33) practices during training camp at State Farm Stadium in Glendale on July 26, 2026. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
Benson, a former third-round pick, clearly has potential to be a big-play running back. He's flashed that on multiple occasions through his first two seasons in Arizona.
Yet a mix of injuries and inconsistent play has put his Cardinals tenure in jeopardy as we enter the depths of the preseason. Arizona brought in Tyler Allgeier and Jeremiyah Love this offseason to take over the backfield, and with James Conner on the roster, Benson is at best battling with Bam Knight for RB4 duties.
That's a battle Knight is winning, as Benson hasn't practiced lately due to his knee injury while Knight is getting reps ahead of him. Another point to Knight's favor is his recent participation in special teams, which can make or break a player's chances of making the roster.
The conversation has now shifted from "Benson vs Knight" to "will Arizona keep Knight as a fourth running back?" ahead of cut-down day.
"Versatility comes into play there. Whether it's versatility on what they can do positionally, whether it's first and second down or third down. When it comes to special teams, that starts weighing into it," Cardinals general manager Monti Ossenfort said.
As for Benson, the possibility of either trade or release looms in the coming weeks barring an eye-opening turnaround.
Arizona Cardinals linebacker BJ Ojulari (9) gets set at the line of scrimmage during their training camp red and white practice at State Farm Stadium in Glendale on Aug. 9, 2026. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
Benson feels closer to actually being cut than Ojulari, though the former second-round pick very much finds himself on the ropes this preseason similar to Benson.
Injuries decimated a once exciting young career for Ojulari, who was shaping up to be a strong presence at outside linebacker before a severe knee injury knocked him out for 1.5 seasons. Ojulari's been on the bounce-back since the second half of last season, though he hasn't quite looked like the player he did coming out of LSU.
The good news for Ojulari? The Cardinals added no substantial help at outside linebacker this offseason, opting to run it back with virtually the same crew of names as before in Josh Sweat, Baron Browning, Jordan Burch, Zaven Collins and Ojulari.
However, Ojulari has struggled to separate himself during training camp, and last week's preseason outing was quite telling. In a game where the Cardinals didn't play any of their starters, Ojulari played deep into the second half against Carolina - and failed to make an impact.
"He's a fast rusher off that edge right there, and I just think it's just for him just continue to get time on task, value received. Continuing to practice," head coach Mike LaFleur said on Ojulari.
"Obviously, there's history in terms of just some of the injuries with him obviously, and just getting back out there, getting his feet underneath him, getting comfortable, using his fastball - which he has a fastball."
That fastball hasn't crossed the plate in 2026, and while Eku Leota continues to climb the Cardinals' depth chart, Ojulari is in serious danger of being off the roster.
This article was originally published on www.si.com/nfl/cardinals/onsi as 2 Big-Name Cardinals On The Verge of Being Cut .
